"Barclays is unwavering in its commitment to the Barclays Center and we are very pleased with our long-term alliance with our great partners, the Nets and Forest City Ratner Companies," Barclays chief administrative officer Gerard LaRocca said in a press release. "We are excited about being part of the continued renaissance of Brooklyn, and we eagerly look forward to opening night at Barclays Center."

Whether Bruce Ratner will continue with construction of the Barclays Center may be in question, but at least the foreign bank was able to get U.S. bailout money more or less under the table.

Over the weekend, the Wall Street Journalconfirmed suspicions by revealing that two dozen U.S. and foreign banks got shares of AIG's bailout money.

Meanwhile AIG, like other U.S. bailout recipients, has balked at committing how — or whether — it will reimburse taxpayers for the estimated $173 billion of bailout money it's received so far.

It's probably just an unpleasant coincidence, by the way, that the arena was designed by Frank Gehry, many of whose buildings look as though they're on the verge of collapse.

More morsels on Barclays and/or the Barclays Center:

 Puffery from the Barclays Center website on how a Barclays arm provides "solutions" for corporate clients and governments: "Barclays Capital is the investment banking division of Barclays Bank PLC, which has an AA long-term credit rating and a balance sheet of over $2.4 trillion. With a distinctive business model, Barclays Capital provides large corporate, government and institutional clients with solutions to their financing and risk management needs. Barclays Capital has offices in 29 countries, employs over 16,200 people and has the global reach and distribution power to meet the needs of issuers and investors worldwide.

"The Barclays Center Showroom on the 38th floor of The New York Times Building in Manhattan (on Eighth Avenue between 40th & 41st Streets) will serve as an experiential first look at the innovation and style of the future Barclays Center."

While you're at the visitors center, you might be interested in leasing space in the Times's HQ itself. The ailing paper is desperately seeking tenants.

Barclays caused surprise last month when, despite announcing pre-tax profits of £6.1 billion for 2008, it disclosed that it had also expanded its balance sheet by £900 billion, taking assets and liabilities to more than £2,000 billion.

In related NBA news, fans might be interested in the Barclays Center FAQ, especially this passage:

Q: Will the ticket prices remain the same in Brooklyn?

A: While prices have yet to be determined, they will remain comparable and competitive within the marketplace.

Translation: You'll pay more.

But that's the relatively good news. The bad news is that even those of you who can't afford tickets have already paid bailout money to ailing Barclays, thanks to your bailout of aily AIG.